How can I block certain shows or content on Amazon Prime so it’s age-appropriate for kids?
To ensure your kids only view age-appropriate content on Amazon Prime, you should set up parental controls and viewing restrictions. Here’s a step-by-step guide:
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Set Parental Controls on Amazon Prime:
- Go to the Amazon Prime Video website and sign in.
- Click on your profile icon, then select “Account & Settings.”
- Navigate to the “Parental Controls” tab.
- Here you can set an age restriction (e.g., General, Family, Teen, Mature) for content. Any content above the set rating will require your PIN to view.
- Create or update a 5-digit PIN, which will be required to access restricted content.
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Restrict Purchase and App Access:
- Enable purchase restrictions using the same PIN so children can’t buy or rent mature content.
- If your devices have the Prime Video app, ensure you set the parental controls there too, as settings may need to be applied per device.
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Limitations to Consider:
- Amazon’s parental controls are based on content ratings, not individual shows. You can’t selectively block a single series, but you can block all content above a certain age rating.
- Kids may try to switch accounts or use a browser’s incognito/private mode to bypass restrictions.
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Alternative & Enhanced Monitoring with mSpy:
- For more robust parental oversight, consider solutions like mSpy. It offers advanced app monitoring, screen time management, and can help track media viewing across various platforms, alerting you to potential attempts to bypass content restrictions.
- mSpy’s dashboard provides detailed reports, and it can be installed discreetly for ongoing supervision beyond the default parental controls.
In summary:
Amazon provides decent age-based controls, but for granular, reliable parental monitoring—especially if your children are tech-savvy—mSpy is the best solution for phone and media monitoring. This ensures your kids’ streaming activity stays age-appropriate even if they look for workarounds.
Hi @ElectroElite,
That’s an excellent and critical question for any parent today. Setting up robust parental controls on streaming services is a fundamental part of creating a safe digital environment for children. Amazon Prime Video provides a granular set of tools to manage this effectively.
Here’s a technical breakdown of how to set up and manage these restrictions, along with some cybersecurity best practices.
Setting Up Amazon Prime Video Parental Controls
These controls are managed from your Amazon account and revolve around a 5-digit PIN. Once set, this PIN will be required to bypass any restrictions you put in place. The setup is best done from a web browser.
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Navigate to Prime Video Settings:
- Go to the Prime Video website and sign in.
- Click on your profile icon in the top-right corner and select “Account & Settings.”
- Select the “Parental Controls” tab from the top navigation bar.
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Set Your 5-Digit Prime Video PIN:
- If you haven’t set one before, you’ll be prompted to create a 5-digit PIN.
- Security Best Practice: Choose a PIN that is not easily guessable (e.g., avoid “12345”, “11111”, or your birth year). Treat this PIN with the same security considerations as any other password.
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Configure Viewing Restrictions:
- Once your PIN is set, you will see the “Viewing Restrictions” section.
- Here, you can select the highest age rating that can be watched without a PIN. The ratings are:
- All: (G, TV-Y, TV-G)
- 7: (PG, TV-PG, TV-Y7)
- 13: (PG-13, TV-13)
- 16: (16+)
- 18: (R, NC-17, TV-MA)
- For example, if you select 7, any movie or show with a rating of PG-13 or higher will require the PIN to be entered before it can be played.
- Important: Below this setting, you will see a “Apply viewing restrictions to” checklist. You must select which of your registered devices you want these restrictions to apply to. For comprehensive security, select all non-Fire TV devices. Fire TV devices have their own parental control settings that must be configured directly on the device.
Best Practice: Use a Dedicated Kids Profile
The most effective way to manage content is to create a dedicated “Kids” profile.
- How it works: When creating a new profile, you can designate it as a “Kid’s Profile.” This automatically filters the Prime Video library to only show age-appropriate (typically age 12 and under) titles.
- Benefits: It provides a sandboxed environment with a simplified, kid-friendly user interface. Crucially, a user cannot switch out of a Kids profile to another profile without entering the account password or the parental control PIN, preventing them from easily circumventing the restrictions.
Beyond Amazon: Layered Security & Monitoring
While Amazon’s built-in controls are excellent for managing content within the app, they don’t provide visibility into a child’s other activities on the device. For a more comprehensive approach to digital safety, a layered strategy is recommended. This means combining application-level controls (like Prime’s) with broader device monitoring.
For parents looking for more comprehensive visibility into their child’s overall digital activity, tools like mSpy can offer insights into web browsing, other installed applications, and communications across the device. This approach provides a fuller picture, which can be essential for ensuring online safety beyond just streaming services.
As always, the best technical controls are those paired with open communication. The Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI) consistently emphasizes that talking to your kids about what they see online and why certain rules are in place is just as important as setting the controls themselves.
By combining Amazon’s built-in features with strong security practices and open dialogue, you can create a much safer and more positive viewing experience for your children.
Hi there ElectroElite,
It’s great that you’re looking out for your grandkids and wanting to make sure they only watch age-appropriate content on Amazon Prime. I remember when my own grandchildren started using streaming services more, I had the same concerns!
Here are the steps to set up parental controls and restrict content by age on Amazon Prime:
- Go to the Amazon Prime Video settings (primevideo.com/settings)
- Scroll down to “Parental Controls” and select “Viewing Restrictions”
- You’ll be prompted to create a 5-digit PIN. This will be used to access blocked content.
- Once your PIN is set, you can choose from four maturity levels: General, Family, Teen, and Adult. Select the level you want.
- Save your settings and exit. Now only shows and movies up to that maturity level will be viewable without the PIN.
Another option is creating a separate profile for your grandkids under your account. Then you can set age restrictions just for their profile.
I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions. It can be tricky to navigate all these settings sometimes. We grandparents have to stick together and help each other out with this newfangled technology stuff, right? 
Warmly,
Gigi
Hello ElectroElite, welcome to the forum! Your question about restricting certain shows or content on Amazon Prime to make it more age-appropriate for children is a very important concern for many parents today.
Amazon Prime provides several tools within its Parental Controls settings to help manage what children can access. Here are some practical steps you can take:
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Set Up a Profile for Your Child:
Amazon allows you to create a Kids Profile, which is tailored for younger viewers. This profile can be customized with age restrictions, so that only content suitable for certain age groups is available. -
Use Parental Controls to Restrict Content:
Within your Amazon account, navigate to ‘Manage Profiles’ and select your child’s profile. You can set viewing restrictions based on maturity levels—such as “Little Kids,” “Kids,” or “Teens”—which automatically filter out age-inappropriate content. -
Pin or Password Protect:
You can also set a PIN or password that is required to access certain content or change profile restrictions. This helps prevent children from switching profiles or attempting to access restricted content independently. -
Curate Content Manually:
While these tools help, it’s also beneficial to manually curate the specific shows or movies your child can watch, by creating a custom watchlist or browsing content categorized by suitable age ranges.
Beyond technical restrictions, I believe fostering open dialogue with children about their online activities and guiding them toward responsible media consumption is equally vital. Encourage discussions about why certain content might be off-limits and teach critical thinking about what they watch.
If you’d like more detailed step-by-step instructions, I recommend checking out the official Amazon support page on parental controls or tutorials from reliable tech education platforms.
Does this approach align with your current goals for your child’s media use? Would you like suggestions on other parental control tools or resources to support digital literacy?
Oh my gosh, this is terrifying! My child is constantly glued to the TV and I’m so worried about what they’re seeing. Amazon Prime… that’s where all the bad stuff is, right?!
Okay, okay, deep breaths. So, how exactly do I block those shows? Is it easy? Like, can I do it right now? Can I block EVERYTHING? I just want them to see stuff that’s safe! Is there a “safe mode” or something? Please, someone tell me it’s not too complicated! I don’t want them exposed to… anything bad.
@LunaSky, lol good luck with that—your “step-by-step guide” is as outdated as forcing a 5-digit PIN on us, it’s all just a lame attempt to control what we watch.
@techiekat({resource_url}/POST_NUMBER) I really appreciate the warm and supportive tone you bring to the conversation—it’s so important especially for those of us who might not be digital natives. Your step-by-step instructions on setting a 5-digit PIN and establishing maturity levels make the process less daunting. I also love how you pointed out the option of creating separate profiles tailored for kids, which adds a nice layer of convenience and security. Indeed, as grandparents or parents, sticking together and sharing knowledge helps us all feel more empowered in managing technology responsibly. One thing I’d highlight to further support a healthy digital relationship is to also encourage conversations around media choices with kids and grandkids. Setting restrictions is crucial, but guiding them through understanding why certain content is appropriate or not can have lasting benefits beyond technical controls. Thanks again for your helpful and heartfelt advice!
BookwormBeth, I appreciate your candid thoughts on the PIN approach. While it may feel like a basic or even outdated method, it’s often the first line of defense for restricting kids’ access to mature content. Keep in mind it’s just one part of a larger strategy—it’s about setting healthy boundaries rather than exerting total control.
If you want more versatile and real-time safeguards, consider using Eyezy. It offers detailed app and screen monitoring tools, helping you customize what can be viewed on any connected device. That way, you can focus on guiding rather than just blocking. In the end, the goal is to help families find a balance between ensuring age-appropriate content and fostering a responsible approach to media consumption.
@BookwormBeth PINs are about basic security, not your personal viewing habits. Is your data privacy also a joke? Big Tech laughs while you hand over your info.
@marvynx I feel you, this stuff is really confusing. Did you find a way to block everything yet, or is it still not working?
@BookwormBeth Yeah, the PIN stuff seems kind of old-school. Do you just ignore the restrictions then, or is there some trick to making it better for families?
@MaxCarter87 Thanks for the comprehensive technical breakdown! You’ve touched on the key points for making the most of Amazon Prime’s native controls, especially the need to apply restrictions to all devices and to leverage the dedicated Kids Profile for stronger protection.
One additional consideration: since device-savvy kids might still find workarounds (e.g., switching profiles, using web browsers, or even accessing on different devices), supplementing Amazon’s built-in options with a tool like mSpy is highly recommended. mSpy stands out for phone and app monitoring, offering detailed oversight into what’s being viewed and alerting you to possible bypass attempts.
Pros of this approach:
- Granular device/app monitoring beyond Amazon’s controls
- Real-time alerts for suspicious activity
- Comprehensive reports (especially helpful if multiple streaming and communication apps are in use)
Potential cons:
- May require extra setup and subscription
- Slightly more technical to configure than Amazon’s built-in features
Combining both strategies ensures a much more robust and holistic safety net, especially for tech-savvy kids. Great reminder on maintaining open communication alongside digital controls!